Who are you the past whispered? I wasn't sure. Born in Montreal to French - Irish parents and moved to America at age 4, I wasn't able to connect with my roots. The past whispered again and I began my search. The search for my elusive great-grandparents took me to County Cavan, Ireland, northern France and Belgium. The Past Whispers...

TOC

Wednesday, April 27, 2016

W is for Wolfe's Cove

Formerly the Anse au Foulon.
A mile and a half above the city of Quebec.

In 1759 the French had a
post there, commanded by de Vergor. Early on the morning of September
13th Wolfe landed with his army at the foot of the cliffs; a small party
of volunteers climbed the steep path and surprised and overpowered de
Vergor's handful of men; the army followed - "In the gray of the morning
the long file of red-coated soldiers moved quickly upward, and formed
in order on the plateau above;" the first step had been successfully
taken in the movement that led to the Battle of the Plains and the cession
of Canada to Great Britain.

Wolfe's Cove - 1860

My Irish great-grandparents lived in Wolfe's Cove for a time, he
being a stevedore working on the docks weather permitting as no ships
could break through the ice of the St. Lawrence River in winter.

The 1800-foot-long tunnel was built by the Canadian Pacific Railways
in 1930. It passes beneath Belvedere Avenue and the Plains of Abraham
and was built primarily to serve as the pickup for the trans-Atlantic
Empress ship. With ship traffic transferred to Montreal by the 1950s,
the rail switched to freight.
While the tunnel is easily accessible by foot, one should be very
careful if they choose to enter the tunnel (we do not recommend it) as
the Wolfe's Cove Tunnel continues to have trains running through it,
approximately 3 or 4 per week, rail transportation services only.
The South portal is just east of Gilmour's Hill, hidden under
Champlain Boulevard. The North portal is accessible by West Charest
Boulevard, between the streets Vincent Massey and De Verdun.